Episode 397: Managing Grief and MS with Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor
Release Date: 04/07/2025
Special Episode: Dr. Aaron Boster Explains MS Clinical Trials
RealTalk MS
You're living with MS, and maybe you're thinking about participating in an MS clinical trial. But how do they work? Are they safe? What's the difference between Phase 1, 2, and 3 trials? What are the real patient risks and benefits of participating in a clinical trial? In this special episode of RealTalk MS, we're getting answers to those questions and so much more from my guest, Dr. Aaron Boster. Dr. Boster is the founder of the Boster Center for Multiple Sclerosis in Columbus, Ohio, where he brings over 20 years of experience as an MS clinician. Dr. Boster has also participated...
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Episode 420: A DIY Kit for Improving Your MS Journey with Julie Polisena
RealTalk MS
Disease-modifying therapies are the cornerstone of MS treatment, but they're not the only piece of the puzzle. Beyond prescription medications, self-care that includes making healthy lifestyle choices can significantly improve your quality of life with MS. Julie Polisena knows this firsthand. Julie lives with MS, and in a recent blog post, she shared a comprehensive list of the lifestyle changes that have improved her quality of life with MS. Julie joins us today to discuss some of the most impactful changes you can make to start your own journey toward better health and wellness. ...
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Episode 419: A Whole-Person Health Approach to MS Care with Dr. Lynne Shinto
RealTalk MS
Some people living with MS adhere to a treatment plan based exclusively on what we might consider traditional medicine. Others opt for alternative treatments. And, still, others take a whole-person health approach, blending integrative medicine with traditional treatments designed to support an individual's mind and body. Dr. Lynne Shinto joins me to discuss how a whole-person health approach can transform living with MS. Dr. Shinto is a Professor of Neurology and an MS Specialist at the Center for Women's Health at Oregon Health and Science University. We're also sharing some...
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Episode 418: The Importance of Developing a Growth Mindset When You're Living With MS with Dr. Mirian Franco
RealTalk MS
Living with MS means living with uncertainty, possible physical disability or cognitive dysfunction, bouts of crushing fatigue, mood changes, and let's not forget the very real irritation of well-meaning people telling you how healthy you look. Just processing the world around you can feel challenging. In this episode, psychologist Dr. Miriam Franco joins me to discuss how developing a growth mindset can make all the difference in how you experience your MS journey. We're also sharing a real-world example of how the drastic cuts in federal funding are already impacting MS care. We'll...
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Episode 417: Music and the Body with Emmy Award-Winning Composer Jeff Beal
RealTalk MS
If you've watched the critically acclaimed series, House of Cards, on Netflix, or the OCD detective series, Monk, on the USA Network, you've already listened to some of five-time Emmy award-winning composer Jeff Beal's work. This week, Jeff joins me to discuss his journey as an artist and as someone living with MS. We're also sharing all the details about the free event taking place at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica, California, on September 1, when Jeff joins conductor Leonard Slatkin and the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra for a free concert featuring three of Jeff's works, including a...
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Episode 416: The Updated McDonald Diagnostic Criteria for MS with Dr. Andrew Solomon
RealTalk MS
Since 2001, clinicians have relied on the McDonald Diagnostic Criteria as the gold standard for diagnosing someone with multiple sclerosis. As science continues to add to our understanding of MS, the McDonald Criteria have been updated in 2005, 2010, 2017, and most recently in 2024. This latest iteration of the McDonald criteria will be published in September, and today, Dr. Andrew Solomon is giving us a preview of what these changes are, what they mean, and how they're going to improve the process of diagnosing someone with MS. We'll also share results of a study that show...
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Episode 415: Your Money -- Ways to Earn and Hold Onto More of It When You're Living with MS with Beth Scott and Paula Cole
RealTalk MS
Living with MS is expensive. Very expensive. It's estimated that the average cost of living with MS is over $88,000 per year. How, in the midst of financial stress and uncertainty, can you formulate a financial plan that takes MS into account? Paula Cole lives with MS, and she also lives with a lot of financial planning savvy. Paula joins the podcast to share tips and strategies for establishing a personal financial plan for you and your family -- even while you're coping with MS. And Beth Scott, the director of case management at the Patient Advocate Foundation, joins us to...
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Episode 414: Finding Peace in the Midst of Uncertainty with Andrea Arzt, LCSW, MSCS
RealTalk MS
Living with MS has always meant living with uncertainty. Left unchecked, that uncertainty can lead to anxiety, which can make your MS symptoms feel worse. This week, Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Andrea Arzt, joins me to share tips and strategies for finding peace in the midst of uncertainty. You'll also meet the CEO of the MS International Federation, Dr. Lydia Makaroff. And you'll hear how artist Gordon Keith is combining his art with philanthropy in support of MS Canada. We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??! This Week: Finding peace during...
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Episode 413: How AI Will Impact MS Patient Care with Dr. Brad Willingham
RealTalk MS
We're witnessing the early stages of a paradigm shift, as artificial intelligence is beginning to impact virtually every aspect of healthcare, from research to patient care. And there's much, much more to come. This week, Dr. Brad Willingham, the Director of MS Research at Shepherd Center in Atlanta, joins me to discuss how AI will impact MS patient care. We'll also share the encouraging results from a Phase 2 open-label extension study for Fenebrutinib, an investigational disease-modifying therapy. We'll tell you about study results that show exercise interventions that...
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Episode 412: Understanding Late-Onset MS with Dr. Jacqueline Nicholas
RealTalk MS
More people over the age of 50 are being diagnosed with MS than ever before. When you consider the other health conditions that often develop as we age, and you add the fact that our immune system changes with age, there's a lot to think about when it comes to diagnosing and treating late-onset MS. This week, Dr. Jacqueline Nicholas, the System Chief of Neuroimmunology and Multiple Sclerosis at the OhioHealth Multiple Sclerosis Center, joins me to help us better understand late-onset MS. We'll also tell you about research results that could lead to a simple blood test that can...
info_outlineFor many people, it can be difficult to talk about the feelings of loss that can accompany MS. For some, it's the loss of the way they imagined their life would turn out. For others, it's the more specific loss of function. Perhaps the loss of their mobility. Or a decline in their cognitive skills. It's painful to imagine any of these scenarios, let alone experience them in real life.
The human response to loss is grief. And grieving itself can affect your physical, emotional, and cognitive health. Joining me today to discuss how grieving can affect you, along with ways to best manage grief, is Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor.
Dr. O'Connor is a professor of psychology at the University of Arizona, where she directs the Grief, Loss, and Social Stress Lab, investigating the effects of grief on the brain and the body. Dr. O'Connor also lives with MS, and the title of her new book is The Grieving Body: How the Stress of Loss Can Be an Opportunity for Healing.
We'll also share the results of a study on MS fatigue in Finland.
We'll tell you about a study that focused on sexual dysfunction among women living with MS in Iran.
You'll learn what a research team discovered when they connected sick days from work with the prodromal phase of MS.
And we're sharing a new resource from the MS International Federation that will help you assess which wellness practices and complementary therapies may be beneficial for you.
We have a lot to talk about! Are you ready for RealTalk MS??!
This Week: Managing the grief that comes from living with MS :22
Results from a Finnish study adds further evidence to what we know about MS fatigue 1:36
Results of a study that focused on sexual dysfunction among women living with MS in Iran 3:13
Can job-related sick days help researchers better understand the prodromal phase of MS? 5:48
The MS International Federation has produced a very worthwhile guide to wellness practices and complementary therapies for people with MS 10:49
Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor discusses managing the grief that accompanies being diagnosed with MS 12:42
Share this episode 34:02
Have you downloaded the free RealTalk MS app? 34:22
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STUDY: Evaluation of Patient-Perceived Fatigue in Multiple Sclerosis Using the Finnish MS Registry
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20552173251325098
STUDY: The Prevalence of Sexual Dysfunction and Its Contributors Among the Women with Multiple Sclerosis
https://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12905-025-03653-y
STUDY: The Prodromal Phase of Multiple Sclerosis: Evidence from Sickness Absence Patterns Before Disease Onset -- A Matched Cohort Study
https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2025/03/25/jnnp-2024-335279.full
STUDY (PLAIN ENGLISH VERSION): The Prodromal Phase of Multiple Sclerosis: Evidence from Sickness Absence Patterns Before Disease Onset -- A Matched Cohort Study
https://tremlettsmsresearchexplained.wordpress.com/2025/03/26/the-prodromal-phase-of-multiple-sclerosis-evidence-from-sickness-absence-patterns-before-disease-onset-a-matched-cohort-study-explained
DOWNLOAD: Wellness Practices and Complementary Therapies in MS
https://msif.org/resources/wellness-practices-and-complementary-therapies/
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RealTalk MS Episode 397
Guests: Dr. Mary-Frances O'Connor